Michael Foot

Michael Foot (1913-2010) was one of the outstanding politicians of the twentieth century. Educated at Oxford, he was editor of the Evening Standard and subsequently of Tribune, and entered Parliament in 1945 as MP for Plymouth Devonport. He lost this seat in 1955 but returned to Westminster in 1960, representing Ebbw Vale - formerly the constituency of his great hero, Aneurin Bevan. In 1976 he became deputy leader of the Labour Party and in 1980 succeeded James Callaghan as leader, remaining in that position until his resignation following the 1983 general election. He retired from Parliament in 1992. His many books include The Pen and the Sword (1958), Aneurin Bevan (1962 and 1973), Debts of Honour (1980), H.G.: The History of Mr Wells (1995) and Dr Strangelove, I Presume (1999). A volume of his essays, The Uncollected Michael Foot, was published by Politico's in 2003.